Constriction of soft tissue within the body is a problem that affects people of all ages. For example, stenosing tendovaginitis, or trigger finger as the condition is commonly known, is an abnormal condition affecting the flexor tendons of the hand and affects people of all ages. The problem involves the tendon system of the hand and can range from a simple nuisance to completely disabling the function of the hand. The tendon system of the hand involves an extremely intricate and finely matched pulley system to allow each finger joint to move through a complete forceful arc of motion. The pulley system and tendon system dysfunction when a finger develops triggering (trigger finger). The mismatch or dysfunction causes a stenosis or tightening, this can be related to the tendon or the pulley. More specifically, the greatest excursion of the tendon occurs at the A-1 pulley and it is this pulley which is typically addressed by treatment. The causes of trigger finger as well as with other stenotic soft tissue scenarios includes overuse, inflammatory condition, diabetes and trauma.
Several non-surgical methods for treating constricted soft tissue, including trigger finger, are well known in the art, including splinting and steroid injection. Surgical treatment is designed to release the constricted soft tissue. For the example, with the trigger finger malady, the goal of releasing the A-1 pulley is achieved by cutting or removing part of the stenotic tissue. The surgery procedure may be performed in the operating room or an office setting using many different tools. Endoscopes, trigger release devices with fixed blades, finely pointed needles and even open surgical techniques with standard scalpels or scissors are currently the type of procedures and instrumentation used. Problems with the current surgical techniques include multiple incisions or entry wounds to the hand, the ongoing risk to adjacent neurological or vascular structures due to the proximity of the target soft tissue. For the example, with trigger finger surgical treatments, post-operative complications may include damage to the adjacent digital artery or digital nerve.
Accordingly, developing a new surgical instrument device and a corresponding surgical method to decrease the likelihood of intraoperative complications when releasing soft tissue and resultant lessened morbidity, would be desirable.